How to do a Muscle Up
Reviewed by Jim Parker, CPT, B.A. Kinesiology
Rings
Workouts with Muscle Up
Instructions for Proper Form
Muscle Ups are one of the most challenging variations of the Pull Up. This exercise has an extremely high barrier to entry, requiring full body strength and control to perform even a single rep. For those who can perform this exercise for a full set, it’s a great addition to any workout, and for those who are still working towards performing these, it's an excellent goal to help measure progress beyond simply weight moved.
- Grab ahold of the bar with your palms facing away from your body and your hands in a false grip where your thumbs do not wrap around the bar.
- With your arms extended, perform a pull up by pulling your elbows down to the backside of your ribcage to get your chest up over the bar.
- When you are at the top of the pull up, quickly bring your chest forward to get up and over the bar while bringing your elbows in towards your armpits.
- Complete the exercise by extending your elbows up over the bar before lowering and pushing yourself away from the bar to return to the starting position.
Common Form Mistakes
Too Soon
Struggling is a great way to make progress. However, there’s no shame in using an assisted variation while you develop the strength and control to perform this exercise. If you’re not able to do your reps, you’ll likely get more out of one of the assisted variations of this exercise.
Sets & Reps Calculator
Average Muscle Up standards by male, female, gender, weight, age and height
Use this calculator to see Fitbod's possible first recommendations for you. This would be your starting line, based on more than 4.5 billion logged sets from 1.1 million users.
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Alternatives & Variations to Muscle Up
1. Bar Muscle Up
51.6 mSCORESWAPPED 48 TIMESSimilar to the standard Muscle Up, the Bar Muscle Up is performed on a pull-up bar and requires pulling oneself up from a hanging position and transitioning into a dip. It focuses on upper body strength, particularly in the shoulders, arms, and back, demanding high levels of power and technique. This variation is often used in gymnastics and cross-training workouts.
2. Dumbbell Bent Over Row
94.4 mSCORESWAPPED 45 TIMESDumbbell Bent Over Row is a compound exercise that primarily targets the back, but also hits biceps. The use of dumbbells helps prevent compensating for any discrepancies in strength between sides, as well as adds more instability to the movement compared to equipment like barbells. This can be a great addition to any back workout for building muscle mass and strength.
3. Ring Row
24.6 mSCORESWAPPED 38 TIMESRing Rows are a more difficult variation of an Inverted Row. Similar to Inverted Row, this is a compound, bodyweight movement that primarily targets your back. Unlike the simpler variation, the use of rings adds significantly more instability to the movement. You can easily adjust the resistance of this exercise by moving your feet closer or further from the anchor point.
- Intermediate
- Back
- Rings
4. Pull Up
93.2 mSCORESWAPPED 36 TIMESPull Ups are compound, bodyweight exercise that primarily target the back, but also hits the shoulders and biceps. While this exercise does have a decently high barrier to entry, it can be easily adapted to match your current conditioning with weighted or assisted variations. This is an excellent exercise for building functional strength and body control.
- Intermediate
- Back
- Pull Up Bar
5. Lat Pulldown
100 mSCORESWAPPED 31 TIMESThis compound exercise primarily targets the back, but also hits the shoulders and biceps. The movement itself is based on a Pull Up, however, by locking your legs into place, you can add significantly more stability to the movement making it easier to complete a rep, as well as getting control over the resistance. This exercise can be easily adapted to meet your needs with different handles.
6. Cable Row
99.8 mSCORESWAPPED 28 TIMESCable Row is a compound movement that primarily targets your back, but also hits your shoulders and biceps. This exercise is often done with a specific cable machine that sets you into the perfect position, but you can also use an adjustable cable to have more control over the direction your resistance is coming from. This is a great exercise for building muscle mass and strength in your back, and is a common addition to most upper body or pull workouts.
7. Chin Up
88.4 mSCORESWAPPED 27 TIMESChin Ups are a compound, bodyweight exercise that primarily targets your back, but also hits your biceps. It’s similar to a Pull Up, but uses an underhand grip. This is a great exercise for getting more comfortable on a pull up bar, and is great for building strength, and muscle mass.
- Intermediate
- Back
- Pull Up Bar
8. Dumbbell Row
99.9 mSCORESWAPPED 27 TIMESThis compound movement primarily targets the back, but also hits the shoulders and biceps, as well as requiring some core activation for stability. By bracing yourself on the flat bench, you can position your torso parallel to the ground, without needing specific equipment. This is a great exercise with or without limited equipment, and a staple in many back workouts.
9. Hammerstrength Iso Row
93 mSCORESWAPPED 26 TIMESHammerstrength High Row is a compound exercise that primarily targets your back. This movement is fairly similar to other seated rows, however the Hammerstrength Machine will restrict your range of motion to an arc, rather than a straight line. The machine also adds stability to the movement, which allows you to focus your attention on exertion rather than stability.
10. Australian Chin Up
60.3 mSCORESWAPPED 24 TIMESAustralian Chin Up is a bodyweight exercise that primarily targets the back, biceps, and shoulders. This compound movement is performed from an inclined, horizontal position using a low bar, which makes it easier than standard Chin Ups. The inclined position adds stability, allowing you to focus on muscle engagement and form. It's a great exercise for building strength to progress towards full Chin Ups.